The All-Employee Survey (AES) is almost here. AES is available from May 6-28! This past year, you shared, we listened and we acted to make meaningful change for our facility. Here’s a look at some of our successes over the past AES year and your accomplishments in creating meaningful change.
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You shared:
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We changed:
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We need to see action from AES responses.
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Established a process for service leaders to create and share action plans from AES scores for accountability. We created standard work and expectations for AES administration and results.
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We need to emphasize diversity, equity and inclusivity for all.
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We are in process of hiring a DEI Officer.
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We need more communication from leadership.
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Established and implemented leadership rounding.
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We are feeling burned out.
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Implementing REBOOT priorities including emphasis on reducing view alerts. We reduced alerts from 130k to 85k.
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Need for continued leadership development for supervisor.
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Increased access to leadership training for supervisors through participation in Western States Network Consortium, which offers standardized training for new supervisors.
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By voicing your opinions, you influence the space and work around you towards change. You also help ensure Phoenix is a place where we all want to come to work.
We dedicate ourselves not only to improving things like business processes, but also how we treat each other. It is the accumulation of small successes that we will be using to build ourselves up. When we care for each other, we are far more capable of taking care of our nation’s Veterans.
Thanks each of you for your dedication to making our environment better for staff and our Veterans. I look forward to hearing your voice and sharing AES 2024 results.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment and sexual assault, and actively works to create a workplace free of such incidents. Our priority is to ensure VA is a harassment-free environment and to maintain an inclusive culture that ensures protection and safety for all employees and provides a welcoming experience for our Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors.
Executive Leadership and numerous employees have recommitted to stand up to stop harassment by pledging to the White Ribbon VA Pledge. Thank you to the hundreds of employees that committed to the White Ribbon Pledge during the April 10, 2024, All Employee Staff meeting.
RQI station: Station has moved from the ACC basement to Room 1109 as of April 8
Pulmonary Medicine Clinic: Go Live Date is April 29 (seeing first outpatient at 32nd ST OPC)
Neurology Clinic: has moved to 32nd Street VA Clinic AS OF April 29
Sleep Medicine Clinic: Go Live Date is May 13 (seeing first outpatient at 32nd ST OPC)
Outpatient Respiratory Therapy Clinic for Pulmonary Function Testing, Home Oxygen, and CPAP: Go Live Date is May 13 (seeing first outpatient at 32nd ST OPC)
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Deference to Expertise
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As the Nation’s largest employer of nurses, VA recognizes and celebrates the vast contributions and positive impact of nurses in alignment with National Nurses Month. As but a handful of many more examples, there are numerous stories on theHRO Safety Story Catalog of VHA nurses using their expertise to identify patient safety challenges—from an increased number of surgical site infections to patient falls—and collaborating with others to research, pilot, implement, and share solutions.
Throughout this month and well beyond, consider the value, expertise, and diversity of thought that nurses bring to our lives and workplaces. Nurses are the front line staff members who often have the most interaction with patients, and as a result, have the opportunity to most positively and directly impact and advance patient safety through high reliability.
In VHA, the HRO Principle, Deference to Expertise, means we empower and value expertise and honor a diversity of perspectives and insights, regardless of rank, hierarchy, position, or other factors.
Visit the HRO SharePoint site to learn more about this month’s HRO Theme of the Month and other HRO practices.
May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month, a time to honor and celebrate the rich histories, unique perspectives and contributions of these diverse communities. This year’s theme, “Advancing Leaders Through Innovation,” pays tribute to the visionaries and trailblazers who have supported their history and continue to influence our collective future.
Leadership is rooted in the ideals of innovation, resilience, and a pioneering spirit. Throughout history, AANHPI Americans have made significant contributions and advancements in science, arts, technology, health care, business, sports, and government. Despite facing cultural and systemic barriers, they have demonstrated ingenuity and creativity, a legacy that continues to shape our shared destiny as a nation.
The AANHPI community comprises culturally and linguistically diverse people, representing populations from multiple countries and islands. Within this community there are an estimated 380,000 Veterans of AANHPI descent.
As we celebrate this month, let us remember these Veterans who have served our country with distinction and honor. We also acknowledge AANHPI employees, whose dedication and expertise contribute to our mission of providing excellent care to our Veterans.
To learn more about AANHPI Heritage Month, visit the special observance site sponsored by VHA’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
At VA, we work every day to improve the lives of those who have served our country. During May’s Mental Health Month (MHM) observance, we remind Veterans to prioritize their mental health as well as their physical health.
Through our MHM campaign Today I Am, we are amplifying our efforts to reach Veterans, those who care for them, and the public to raise awareness that Veterans experiencing a mental health challenge are not alone. VA offers a variety of proven treatment options that have helped Veterans thrive.
On the MHM page, you will find short videos of seven Veterans sharing their mental health journeys and examples of the support and treatments that helped them to connect, heal, and find balance in their lives. These Veterans also share the sense of triumph they gained after addressing their mental health challenges and encourage other Veterans to reach out for support.
For more stories of Veteran recovery, please visit MakeTheConnection.net and learn more about the variety of evidence-based mental health options we offer Veterans at www.mentalhealth.va.gov.
We can work together to reduce mental health stigma and encourage each other to reach out for help. VA employees are also reminded to take care of their own mental health and well-being in the workplace. Learn more about available resources on the Employee Assistance Program website.
Thank you for all the ways you continue to make a difference in Veterans’ lives
Several completed Personal Identity Verification (PIV) cards have not been picked up by the employee from the June 2024 mass expiration.
The PIV card is strongly resistant to identify fraud and vital to protecting the security, identity, and privacy of not only you as an individual, but of every single person at VA, the entire organization, and, most importantly, the Veterans we serve.
If you have not picked up your completed/printed card, please contact your local PIV office to schedule a pickup time. To schedule an appointment to pick up your PIV click here to review the necessary information applicants need to successfully be issued a VA PIV Card.
Lean for Leaders is a process improvement training targeting Supervisors and Service Chiefs.
This training is designed to teach Lean leadership behaviors and empower supervisors to better utilize their Lean trained staff to support service goals and strategic priorities.
Whistleblower Rights and Protections VA employees and applicants for employment may disclose a violation of law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; an abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety to various entities within and outside of VA, including OAWP, VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) and OSC. Retaliation against individuals for making disclosures, opposing discrimination or participating in an investigation or the discrimination-complaint process is unlawful and will not be tolerated. This includes retaliation against complainants, witnesses and others who provide information concerning such claims.
The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 enhances whistleblowers’ rights by: (1) making a whistleblower's oral disclosures legally sufficient; no longer must a disclosure be in writing; (2) making disclosures that fall within the whistleblower’s job duties an eligible basis of a whistleblower claim; (3) strengthening anti-retaliation restrictions; (4) allowing damages that could be obtained by a whistleblower to include consequential damages such as emotional distress; and (5) according to the Dr. Chris Kirkpatrick Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017, prohibiting accessing the medical record of another employee or an applicant for employment as a part of, or otherwise in furtherance of, any PPP. VA employees and applicants for employment have several avenues to make a whistleblower disclosure or allege whistleblower retaliation, including contacting OAWP, OIG or OSC.
Every VA employee is responsible for safeguarding the privacy of Veterans and other individuals served by VA and for complying with laws that protect patient health information and other sensitive personal information. A whistleblower’s disclosure of information is protected only if the release is not otherwise prohibited by law. Any wrongful disclosure of sensitive personal information, such as medical or personnel records, may be subject to civil and criminal penalties as well as disciplinary or other adverse action.
A whistleblower may:
• Disclose VA Sensitive Personal Information (individually identifiable information) to an authorized outside entity in the course of reporting alleged violations of law, rule, regulation or gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety. Accordingly, whistleblowers may always disclose any information to OAWP, VA OIG or a Congressional Committee or Subcommittee having oversight authority over VA.
• Disclose any information, except information protected by 38 U.S.C. § 5705 (Quality Assurance) or 38 U.S.C. § 7332 (Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Sickle Cell, Drug and Alcohol Treatment) to OSC.
• Never disclose information containing VA Sensitive Personal Information to the media, a Veterans Service Organization or any other member of the public.
• Never disclose VA Sensitive Personal Information to an attorney, even one who is representing in the context of whistleblowing.
Offices that can receive whistleblower disclosures include the following:
•VA OAWP (https://www.va.gov/accountability), 855-429-6669;
•VA OIG ( https://www.va.gov/oig), 800-488-8244; and
•OSC (https://www.osc.gov), 800-872-9855.Offices where you can file a complaint of whistleblower retaliation:
•VA OAWP (https://www.va.gov/accountability), 855-429-6669; and
•OSC (https://www.osc.gov), 800-872-9855.
Open this link to find the VA Secretary’s Statement: The Equal Employment Opportunity, Diversity and Inclusion, No FEAR and Whistleblower Rights and Protection Policy Statement (va.gov)
At VA, we are committed to investing in our employees’ futures. Our employee scholarship programs cover tuition, fees, books, and other necessary educational expenses in exchange for a service obligation.
After one year of VA employment, you may apply for:
The Employee Incentive Scholarship Program (EISP) — EISP provides eligible VA employees with a tax-free scholarship of up to $44,228 toward the cost of higher education including tuition, required fees, and books. You may apply if you are in, or seeking to enter, a clinical occupation.
The National Nursing Education Initiative (NNEI) — VA registered nurses may receive up to $44,228 toward the cost of higher education including tuition, required fees, and books. With this tax-free scholarship, you may pay for an approved academic program that leads to retention as a VA registered nurse.
The VA National Education for Employees Program (VANEEP) — VA employees who are enrolled in school full-time may receive replacement salary funding and up to $44,228 toward the cost of higher education including tuition, required fees, and books. This program provides tax-free scholarships and replacement salary funding to help you expedite completion of your approved academic program.
Discuss eligibility, service obligations, and the application process with your local scholarship coordinator today.
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